For centuries, historians and scientists have debated what exactly triggered the Justinian Plague, a catastrophic pandemic that began in 541 AD and ravaged the Byzantine Empire for over two centuries. There were so many theories and guesses but hard biological proof was always missing. Now, the researchers dug into a mass grave in Jerash, an ancient Roman city in present-day Jordan, and uncovered the genetic pathogen: Yersinia pestis, the bacterium infamous for causing plague. The discovery, published in the journal Genes, finally ties the Justinian Plague to the same microbe that would later fuel the Black Death in mediaeval Europe.As Dr Rays HY Jiang from the University of South Florida summed up, "This discovery provides the long-sought definitive proof of Y pestis at the epicentre of the Plague of Justinian."What Was the Justinian Plague?If you think Covid-19 was disruptive, imagine a pandemic that stretched across centuries. Between 541 and 750 AD, the Justinian Plague killed tens of millions, weakened armies, wrecked economies, and reshaped the Byzantine Empire.It first appeared in Pelusium, an Egyptian port city, before sweeping through the Eastern Roman Empire like wildfire. The sheer scale of death was so staggering that some historians argue it permanently altered the course of European history. And yet, until recently, no one could prove with certainty what caused it.“For centuries, we have relied on written accounts describing a devastating disease but lacked any hard biological evidence of the plague's presence. Our findings provide the missing piece of that puzzle,” Dr Jiang explained.Digging Up the Past, Tooth by ToothArchaeologists excavated burial chambers beneath Jerash’s former Roman hippodrome—a structure once used for chariot races and grand public spectacles. There, they discovered human remains from victims of the plague."Using targeted ancient DNA techniques, we successfully recovered and sequenced genetic material from eight human teeth excavated from burial chambers beneath the former Roman hippodrome in Jerash, a city just 200 miles from ancient Pelusium,” said Greg O'Corry-Crowe, another author of the study.The analysis revealed nearly identical strains of Yersinia pestis, meaning the outbreak spread quickly and with devastating impact, just as historical texts described.From Entertainment Hub to Emergency CemeteryWhat makes Jerash especially symbolic is its transformation during the crisis. Once a buzzing trade hub with impressive Roman structures, it suddenly became a burial site."Jerash was one of the key cities of the Eastern Roman Empire, a documented trade hub with magnificent structures,” Dr Jiang said.“That a venue once built for entertainment and civic pride became a mass cemetery in a time of emergency shows how urban centres were very likely overwhelmed.”It is a sobering reminder of how pandemics can flip the world upside down, turning arenas of joy into sites of despair.Lessons That Still Matter TodayThe Justinian Plague may feel like ancient history, but its echoes reach into our present. Plague has not disappeared; it lingers quietly in the background, occasionally resurfacing."We have been wrestling with plague for a few thousand years, and people still die from it today," said Dr Jiang. "Like Covid, it continues to evolve, and containment measures evidently cannot get rid of it. We have to be careful, but the threat will never go away.”That statement might sound chilling, but it is also a reminder: disease, no matter how old, never truly leaves us. The more we learn from ancient outbreaks, the better prepared we are to face future ones.What Now? By decoding the genome of Yersinia pestis from the Justinian era, scientists can better understand how the bacterium has evolved and survived across millennia. It also points out how pandemics have always shaped societies—toppling empires, shifting populations, and altering human history.
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